Sea-Omega 70 News

SUNDAY, Nov. 13, 2016 – Eating a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids – found in some fish and plant oils – may help young adults keep their blood pressure at a healthy level, new research suggests. In a study of more than 2,000 young, healthy adults, those with the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood had the lowest blood pressure, said Dr. Mark Filipovic, a researcher at the University of Zurich and Cantonal Hospital of Baden in Switzerland. "We divided people into four groups," Filipovic said, ranging from the lowest to the highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood. "We found adults in the highest quarter [group] had about 4 millimeters of mercury [mm Hg] lower systolic pressure and 2 mm Hg lower diastolic pressure, compared to those with the least omega-3 fatty acids in their blood," he said. Systolic pressure is the top number of the blood pressure ... Read more

-- It's important for kids to eat well and to practice healthy habits, but a low-fat diet isn't necessary and may even be harmful, experts say. The American Academy of Pediatrics explains: If dietary fats are replaced by added sugars in a child's diet, it may do more harm than good. Healthy fats are essential for brain growth and physical development. Healthy fats, such as those in wild-caught fish and whole milk, are heart healthy. But not all fats are healthy. Kids (and adults) should avoid trans fats, found in many fried or processed foods. Read more

THURSDAY, Aug. 18, 2016 – Two servings of fish a week may be enough to lower the heightened risk for blindness that those with diabetes face, a new Spanish study suggests. Diabetic retinopathy is a serious complication of type 2 diabetes resulting from a drop-off in blood supply to the patient's retina. According to lead researcher Aleix Sala-Vila, it is the most frequent cause of diabetes-related blindness. "We wanted to [see] whether regular consumption of seafood – fatty fish in particular – in the absence of any advice to increase seafood consumption or fish oil supplementation decreased the risk of diabetic retinopathy," explained Sala-Vila, a researcher at the Centro de Investigacion Biomedica en Red in Barcelona. Sala-Vila's team focused on patients whose overall diet was already composed of mostly low-fat or plant-based foods. That said, the team found that those who consumed ... Read more

MONDAY, Aug. 1, 2016 – Heart attack patients who took high doses of fish oil supplements for six months showed improved heart function and less scarring, researchers report. It is not yet precisely known how the large amounts of omega-3 fatty acids in these supplements might have helped the healing process, but the results are encouraging, said study senior author Dr. Raymond Kwong. He is director of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. In his study, 360 heart attack survivors were followed for six months. Half of them were given 4 grams of omega-3 fatty acid supplements daily for six months, while the other half were given placebo pills. A doctor might typically prescribe 1 to 2 grams of omega-3 fatty acid supplements a day if a patient has high triglyceride levels (a type of blood fat), Kwong added. Using MRIs of the heart, the researchers ... Read more

THURSDAY, July 21, 2016 – Colon cancer patients who take in higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, mainly from oily fish, may have better odds of survival, a new study finds. The study of almost 1,700 American adults with colon cancer was observational, meaning that it can't prove cause-and-effect. But it did seem to find a benefit from the healthy nutrient. One colon cancer expert who reviewed the new findings wasn't surprised. "We have long suspected the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation," said Dr. Jules Garbus, a colorectal surgeon at Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola, N.Y. "This study begins to show a correlation between 'healthy living' and reducing death from colorectal cancer." In the study, a team led by Dr. Andrew Chan, of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, tracked data on 1,659 people diagnosed with colon cancer. During an average follow-up of ... Read more

TUESDAY, July 19, 2016 – Eating more healthy fats, like nuts, seeds and vegetable oils, while limiting animal fats and refined carbohydrates, can help prevent or control type 2 diabetes, new research suggests. The large study found these dietary changes can lower blood sugar levels and improve insulin sensitivity. "The world faces an epidemic of insulin resistance and diabetes. Our findings support preventing and treating these diseases by eating more fat-rich foods like walnuts, sunflower seeds, soybeans, flaxseed, fish and other vegetable oils and spreads, in place of refined grains, starches, sugars and animal fats," said study co-leader Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian. He is dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in Boston. "This is a positive message for the public. Don't fear healthy fats," Mozaffarian said in a university news release. ... Read more

TUESDAY, July 5, 2016 – Hold the butter, margarine and high-fat dairy: A new study supports the notion that these "saturated" fats are bad for you. The study, which followed more than 126,000 people for three decades, found that people who ate higher amounts of saturated fats and trans fats died earlier than those who stuck to healthier unsaturated fats. Unsaturated fats include plant-based, unprocessed fats such as those found in olive, canola or soybean oil, the study authors explained. "These findings support current dietary recommendations to replace saturated fat and trans fat with unsaturated fats," concluded a team of researchers led by Dr. Frank Hu of Harvard School of Public Health in Boston. One nutritionist believes the study should help clear up the confusion many consumers have about dietary fat. "There's a common misconception that eating dietary fat makes you gain body ... Read more

MONDAY, June 27, 2016 – Regularly eating fish and other foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids may lower your risk of fatal heart disease, a new research review suggests. "Our results lend support to the importance of fish and omega-3 consumption as part of a healthy diet," said senior study author Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, in Boston. "At a time when some but not other trials of fish oil supplementation have shown benefits, there is uncertainty about cardiovascular effects of omega-3s," Mozaffarian said in a university news release. Fish are the main dietary sources of omega-3 fatty acids. Fatty fish, such as salmon, trout, anchovies, sardines and herring, are the richest source of these nutrients. Walnuts, flaxseed oil, canola oil and some other seeds and nuts contain the plant-based omega-3 known as ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, June 22, 2016 – Americans spend a good chunk of their health care dollars on alternative medicine, such as acupuncture, yoga, chiropractic care and natural supplements, a new government report shows. In fact, they paid more than $30 billion out of pocket in 2012 on chiropractors and other complementary health practitioners, as well as supplements and other forms of alternative medicine. "Substantial numbers of Americans spent billions of dollars out-of-pocket on these approaches – an indication that users believe enough in the value of these approaches to pay for them," said study co-author Richard Nahin. He is lead epidemiologist at the U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Expenditures in 2012 included: $14.7 billion out-of-pocket on visits to complementary practitioners such as chiropractors, yoga instructors, acupuncturists or massage ... Read more

THURSDAY, May 19, 2016 – Teens who eat high amounts of saturated fats or low amounts of healthier mono- and polyunsaturated fats tend to have denser breasts 15 years later, new research suggests. That's important because greater breast density is a risk factor for breast cancer, the study authors said. But the researchers noted they didn't find a large change in breast density volume based on dietary fat intake. "It was a modest difference in breast density," said the study's senior author Joanne Dorgan. She's a professor of epidemiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. While this study can't prove cause-and-effect, the researchers speculated that different fats may play different roles in breast tissue formation and maintenance. Teen years are a critical time for breast development, the study authors noted. Dorgan and her team reviewed data from the ... Read more

TUESDAY, April 26, 2016 – Omega-3 fish oil supplements may improve the effectiveness of antidepressants, new research suggests. Researchers reviewed the findings of eight clinical trials worldwide, as well as other evidence, and concluded that the supplements appear to help battle depression in people already on medication. "Omega-3 fish oil – in combination with antidepressants – had a statistically significant effect over a placebo," said study leader Jerome Sarris. He is head of the ARCADIA Mental Health Research Group at the University of Melbourne in Australia. The study looked at the result of trials where patients battling depression took either a standard antidepressant plus a form of omega-3 fish oil, versus the antidepressant plus an inactive placebo. "The difference for patients taking both antidepressants and omega-3, compared to a placebo, was highly significant," Sarris ... Read more

MONDAY, March 21, 2016 – More seniors than ever are taking supplements alongside their medications, a practice that puts them at risk for dangerous drug interactions, researchers report. More than 15 percent of older Americans took potentially life-threatening combinations of prescription medications, over-the-counter drugs and dietary supplements in 2011, the study showed. That was almost a twofold increase from 2005, when 8.4 percent of seniors did so. "Alongside the growing use of multiple medications, there is also a hidden, and increasing, risk of potentially deadly drug interactions in older adults," said lead researcher Dr. Dima Qato. She is an assistant professor of pharmacy systems at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Many of these interactions involved heart drugs and supplements, such as omega-3 fish oil supplements, which are more commonly used now than they were five ... Read more

TUESDAY, Feb. 2, 2016 – Seafood lovers, a new study delivers good news on two fronts: Mercury found in fish doesn't lead to mental decline, and for certain people, a diet rich in fish might stave off Alzheimer's disease. Researchers who examined human brains confirmed that people who eat more seafood have more mercury in their brains. But, they found no link between higher brain levels of that neurotoxin and the kind of brain damage that is typical of Alzheimer's disease and dementia. "Everybody's saying seafood has so many health benefits, but everybody's afraid of the mercury," said lead study author Martha Clare Morris, professor of nutritional epidemiology at Rush University in Chicago. "We saw absolutely no evidence that higher levels of mercury in the brain were associated with any of the neuropathologies associated with dementia," she said. The researchers also found that eating ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 20, 2016 – For years, experts have preached the gospel of eating "healthy" fats and limiting "unhealthy" fats. Now, a new study contends that if people worldwide began to eat healthier fats, there might be more than a million fewer deaths from heart disease every year. Although a great deal of attention has been focused on reducing saturated fats from the diet, the researchers said the focus should be two-fold: reducing unhealthy fats such as saturated fat and trans fats, and replacing them with healthy fats, such as polyunsaturated fats. "Our findings highlight the importance of ending America's fear of all fat. We estimate that nearly 50,000 Americans die of heart disease each year due to low intake of vegetable oils," said Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, senior study author and dean of the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy in Boston. However, while the ... Read more